Alejandro Sabella was tired and knew that he took this squad as far as he could when they stepped off the pitch at the Estadio Maracanã just a few weeks ago. After several rumblings in the past few hours, the coach once again reaffirmed his position and said that he was not going to continue as coach of the Argentine national team.

Alejandro Sabella was tired and knew that he took this squad as far as he could when they stepped off the pitch at the Estadio Maracanã in the World Cup just a few weeks ago. After several rumblings in the past few hours, the coach once again reaffirmed his position and said that he was not going to continue as coach of the Argentine national team. Despite the repeated efforts by AFA president Julio Grondona to keep him on, the former Estudiantes boss decided to do otherwise.

It seemed to have been foreshadowed by his agent days before the World Cup final when he said that his client would not return to coach the national team.

On Monday evening, Fox Sports Lat Am journalist Emiliano Pinson put this information out. It was important as it started to take the Sabella story out of the realm of speculation and into materialization.

Pinson said: "Alejandro Sabella has already told Julio Grondona that he will NOT continue as DT (head coach) of @Argentina..."

With this decision, Sabella ends a tenure that almost went three years. More importantly, he offered some type of stability off the pitch after the circus that was the Diego Maradona experience and then the inability of Sergio Batista on the bench during the 2011 Copa America.

Right now the main candidates are former Newell's Old Boys and FC Barcelona coach Gerardo Martino as well as former Albiceleste boss Jose Pekerman. Both coaches are currently without contract and AFA would look to be able to bring in either of them to begin preparations for next year's Copa America.

Pekerman was supposed to begin negotiations with the Colombian FA to continue as Cafetero coach sometime next week after having asked for "personal time" to tend for his ailing mother. This turn in events would make Pekerman change his mind and return to the team head led in the World Cup in 2006 in Germany.